Egypt Shutters Internet in Unprecedented Move, Analysts Say

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Egyptian officials apparently took the unprecedented step of shutting down all Internet access across the country in response to growing civil unrest, according to reports from inside Egypt as well as international technology analysts.

Just after midnight in Egypt, analysts at the U.S.-based Internet intelligence firm Renesys observed the "virtually simultaneous" withdrawal of all Internet access to the country.

"The Egyptian government's actions tonight have essentially wiped their country from the global map," said Renesys's James Cowie on a company blog